The headline feels big because it is. Student journalists at Montclair’s College of Communication and Media took home two National Murrow Awards—one for Video Hard News and one for Video Newscast. These aren’t classroom prizes. These are among the most respected awards in American journalism. When students win at this level, it tells us something powerful about what a campus newsroom can be. It tells us that teaching, practice, and courage can meet on deadline and hold their own on a national stage.
We’re going to slow down the moment and look inside the craft. We’ll unpack what these awards mean, how a student team gets from idea to air, and why the path matters for every young reporter, photojournalist, editor, and producer who loves the work. We’ll keep the language clear. We’ll keep the rhythm steady. And we’ll speak as teammates, because in a newsroom, that’s who we are—no matter the role, no matter the shift.
What a National Murrow Means for Students
A National Murrow Award is not just a plaque. It is a sign that the reporting met a high bar for accuracy, clarity, and impact. It says the storytelling felt true and strong. It says the visuals carried real weight. But most of all, it says the work respected the audience. That is the thread that ties great pieces together—student or professional. When a student newsroom wins, it proves that the core habits of journalism can be taught and learned. It proves that standards are not just rules on a syllabus. They are living tools in a student’s hands.
Think about what the categories tell us. Video Hard News rewards fast, fact-first reporting on events that move quickly and matter right now. It demands clear writing and clean structure under time pressure. Video Newscast rewards the whole show—the rundown, the flow, the anchors’ pacing, the handoffs, the graphics, and the timing that keeps viewers engaged and informed. In other words, one award recognizes a single piece executed at a high level. The other recognizes the orchestration that turns many pieces into one strong broadcast. Together, they speak to range and depth.
Inside the Work: From Idea to Broadcast
We love the big headline, but the path to it starts small. It starts with a calendar and a whiteboard. It starts with students pitching stories and editors asking simple, sharp questions: What happened? Who does it affect? What is new here? What do we know, and what do we need to know? In a student newsroom, those questions train the mind. They also shape the day.
Morning: The Story Pitch That Sticks
A pitch meeting moves fast. You share a lead. You frame the angle. You ask for access. You flag legal and ethical concerns. We figure out what the audience needs first, then we plan the rest around that. Instead of chasing noise, we chase clarity. That choice—over and over—builds the show’s identity.
Late Morning: Calls, Confirmations, and the First Script
Now the phones light up. We call sources. We call again. We check the facts we think we know. We cut what we can’t confirm. Then someone writes a first script. It is not poetry. It is a map. What goes first? What goes next? Where does the quote land? Where does the data point sit? The script shows the shots we need and the questions we still have.
Afternoon: Field Work and B-roll That Tells the Truth
The field team moves. Camera bags. Batteries. Tripods. A checklist for audio—because clean sound is half the story. We shoot sequences that make sense: wide to set the scene, medium for context, tight to pull the viewer in. We avoid random cutaways that look pretty but say nothing. We gather sights and sounds that document reality, not frame it as something else. That’s respect for both subject and audience.
Late Afternoon: The Edit That Serves the Viewer
Back in the newsroom, the timeline opens. We stack bites and nat sound. We write to pictures. We clip every um and uh. We check names and titles. We add lower thirds that are simple and readable. We check color balance. We guard against jump cuts that jar. We trim until the piece breathes. If the script and the pictures fight, the pictures win—or the script changes. In visual news, the image leads and the words guide.
Early Evening: The Show Comes Together
The producer lays out the rundown like a road. We lead with the strongest story. We build segments that balance weight and pace. If the lead is heavy, the next block leaves air to breathe. Weather, traffic, or a quick explainer can reset the viewer’s attention before the next hard piece lands. Good producing is not about flash. It’s about rhythm the audience can trust.
Why the Wins Matter for Teaching and Training
Awards are nice, but the daily habits are the real prize. When students move through a cycle like this, they learn more than camera settings and editing shortcuts. They learn to think like journalists. They learn to ask “what do people need to know right now?” Instead of making a piece to impress a professor, they make a piece that serves a community. That flip—from self to service—changes everything.
Standards That Travel With You
Let’s talk about the standards that follow you from college to a first job:
- Accuracy first. We verify names, numbers, and context. We do not guess. If a fact is shaky, it stays out.
- Transparency. If we don’t know something, we say so. We tell viewers what we can confirm and what we are still working to learn.
- Proportionality. We match the size of our story to the size of the event. We avoid hype. We avoid sugarcoating. We aim for balance that feels real.
- Humanity. We remember each subject is a person with a life, a family, and a future beyond our story.
These habits anchor a career. They also anchor trust. And trust is the currency of a newsroom, student or professional.
What “Video Hard News” Demands—And How Students Met It
Hard news is a test of nerve and preparation. You work fast, but you don’t rush the truth. You write clean lines that can be read once and understood. You pick bites that add information, not noise. You build a clear beginning, middle, and end. And you do it knowing the clock will not stop for you.
Students succeed here when they combine a few simple moves:
- Pre-report like a pro. Keep a running file of background data and contacts before a crisis hits. When the story breaks, you’re not starting from zero.
- Interview with intention. Ask short, focused questions that invite specific answers. “What did you see?” “What changed after that?” “How do you know?”
- Write for the ear. Viewers hear your lines once. Use short sentences. Strong verbs. Simple order: subject, verb, object.
- Let sound breathe. A few seconds of natural sound can do more than a paragraph of voice track. Let sirens fade in. Let crowd noise set the scene.
- End with value. Close with a clear next step, a resource, or a fact that helps the viewer act or understand what happens next.
Students who practice this flow build muscle memory. That muscle memory shows up when the lights are hot and the window is small. It shows up in the finished piece. It shows up in the award.
What “Video Newscast” Rewards—And How a Campus Show Built It
A newscast is a symphony of small decisions. None of them win the moment alone. Together, they create the thing we all feel but can’t always name: a show that works.
- Anchors who serve the story. The best anchors don’t perform the news. They present it. They act as steady guides through sharp turns.
- A rundown that breathes. Lead strong. Then vary pace. Use explainers to add light. Use quick reads to bridge. Keep the viewer oriented.
- Graphics that help, not shout. Lower thirds should be legible at a glance. Full screens should carry one idea per board. If a graph needs a legend, it needs a rethink.
- Timing that respects the audience. Hit breaks cleanly. Land teases honestly. Never promise a story you don’t have.
- Consistency across segments. Viewers should feel the same standard in every block: weather, sports, consumer news, investigations, and features.
When a student team nails these basics, the newscast feels professional because it is professional. It’s not a copy of a local station. It’s a student-led station doing the work at a high standard.
The Invisible Work: Ethics, Safety, and Care
Great student journalism respects rules we may never see on screen, but we feel them in the product.
Ethics That Protect People and Work
We seek informed consent in sensitive interviews. We blur or avoid identifiable minors when appropriate. We weigh the harm of showing raw scenes against the public value of understanding them. We follow our school’s standards and the industry’s codes. And when we face a close call, we gather as a team and talk it through. That’s not weakness. That’s wisdom.
Safety in the Field
No story is worth a student’s safety. We plan coverage with situational awareness. We stay visible at night. We check in on schedule. We don’t chase risky shots that put the crew in harm’s way. We work with campus safety and local authorities when needed. In other words, we remember that the goal is to come back and tell the story well.
Care for Sources and for Ourselves
Some assignments carry emotional weight. A good newsroom sets time to debrief. We connect peers to counseling services if a story hits hard. We watch for burnout. We encourage sleep, water, and food on long days. This seems basic. It is. It is also how we keep people and standards strong.
Craft on the Timeline: Why Edits Win Trust
A clean edit shows respect. It respects the viewer’s time. It respects the subject’s voice. It respects the story’s arc. Every cut is a choice. We avoid edits that distort meaning. We show quotes in context. We choose b-roll that matches the words. We avoid stock video that misleads. We label file video clearly. We use graphics to explain, not to decorate. When a team does this week after week, viewers feel it even if they can’t name it. They trust the show because the show trusts them.
The Technology Students Use—and How They Make Tools Sing
Gear matters, but not for the reasons people think. You can shoot a winning package on modest cameras if you light well, record clean audio, and stabilize your shots. You can cut a tight piece on a laptop if your script is crisp and your b-roll covers your edits. What matters most is workflow.
- Shared checklists keep the field kit complete and the studio ready.
- File-naming rules prevent lost footage and last-minute scrambles.
- Style guides keep lower thirds and supers consistent so the show looks like one product, not ten.
- Rundown software discipline prevents double-stacked stories and dead air.
- Backup habits (two drives, two clouds) save you when the worst happens.
Students who adopt these habits early carry them into internships and jobs. That’s how a campus newsroom becomes a talent engine.
The Human Network: Faculty Mentors, Alumni, and Partners
Awards shine on students, and rightly so. But a working newsroom is a community. Faculty mentors guide standards and support tough calls. Engineers keep the studio and control room humming. Librarians help with research. PR shops and community groups help connect reporters to sources. Alumni visit, coach, and open doors. When we say “we,” we mean this whole network, not just the team on the masthead.
This network gives students something else: a sense that the work is bigger than any one shift. When a new class walks in, the old playbooks are there. The show doesn’t restart from zero. It grows.
Why This Moment Belongs to Every Aspiring Journalist
Two National Murrow Awards send a simple message to students everywhere: your work can meet the highest standards right now. You do not have to wait for permission. You do not have to wait for a perfect job or a fancy set. You need a team, a plan, and discipline. You need the courage to call a source again. You need the patience to rewrite a script until it is clear. You need the humility to cut your best line when it doesn’t serve the viewer. Do that again and again, and you build the show you promised to your audience from day one.
And if you are not a journalism major? You still belong in this story. Newsrooms need designers, coders, social producers, data analysts, and project managers. They need people who can translate complex information into useful, honest tools. They need calm people in control rooms and curious people in the field. If you love problem-solving with purpose, there is a chair for you.
What Comes Next: Building on the Win
Awards close one chapter and open another. Here’s how a student newsroom can build on the momentum:
- Document the process. Save scripts, rundowns, timelines, and shot lists from the winning work. Teach the next cohort how the pieces fit.
- Raise the floor, not just the ceiling. Keep the everyday packages strong. Let the exceptional pieces be a bonus, not the only measure.
- Expand the beat list. Add more neighborhood reporting. Add more service journalism that helps viewers solve daily problems.
- Double down on data. Learn to scrape public records, analyze simple datasets, and visualize with clarity.
- Invest in sound. Viewers forgive a soft focus. They do not forgive muddy audio. Strong nat sound sets your show apart.
- Practice crisis drills. Simulate breaking news events and rehearse your response. A smooth newsroom under pressure is a winning newsroom.
- Grow audience with care. Use social platforms to inform, not to bait. Share clips that stand alone and link to the full show. Write captions that add context.
None of these steps require a bigger budget. They require attention and intention. That’s how you turn one season’s success into a newsroom culture.
For Viewers: How to Watch Student News Like a Pro
You are part of this, too. When you watch with a journalist’s eye, you help the show improve.
- Listen for verification. Do the anchors say how they know what they know?
- Watch the lower thirds. Are names, roles, and places labeled clearly and consistently?
- Check the match-cut. Do the pictures match the words, or is the video generic wallpaper?
- Notice pacing. Does the show respect your time? Does it flow without rushing?
- Give feedback. When a piece helps you understand your community, say so. When a piece confuses you, say that, too.
Audience notes are not noise. They are a compass.
The Heart of the Work
At the end of the day, journalism is simple at its core. We find things out. We check them. We explain them. We show you what it looked and sounded like. We respect your time. We care about your life. We don’t scare you for clicks. We don’t hide facts because they are hard. And when we make mistakes, we correct them. That is the promise. That is the craft. That is the reason a student newsroom can stand shoulder to shoulder with professional shops and bring home a national honor.
These two National Murrow Awards do not crown the end of a journey. They point to the road ahead. They remind us that the work is not about the trophy case. It is about the next interview, the next city meeting, the next storm, the next late-night edit on a tired laptop in a quiet lab. That is where trust is earned. That is where skill is grown. That is where a student becomes a journalist.
Lights Down, Resolve Up
Montclair’s student newsroom showed what’s possible when we combine patience with hustle, high standards with kind hearts, and strong guidance with real freedom to try. We can celebrate the win without losing the lesson. Keep the checklist tight. Keep the writing clear. Keep the pictures honest. Keep the sound clean. Keep the audience first.
That is how you build a show that lasts. That is how you turn classes into craft. And that is how a group of students—working together, pushing each other, believing in the mission—makes news that stands tall anywhere.
